Here is What is Hiding in Your Fat Cells

What are Fat Cells?

Fat cells, also known as adipocytes, have many functions in our body such as storing energy, providing protection to organs they surround and have endocrine functions to secrete hormones.

Obesogens

But fat cells are storing other things today that they never used to store before. They are called obesogens. These increase obesity.

Obesogens are compounds found in the environment that disrupt our endocrine system i.e., they disrupt our hormones. They do so by accumulating in our fat cells.

Obesogens are lipophilic. This means they are fat soluble; a fat soluble substance dissolves in fat due to attraction between the substance and fat. And this is what our fat cells do: they attract obesogens like a magnet.

Different obesogens have a different molecular weight, which impacts their entry into fat cells, with lower molecular weight obesogens entering fat cells more rapidly than higher molecular weight obesogens. But due to their lipophilic nature, they diffuse through the phospholipid bilayer, which is the composition of the membrane in all our cells.

Examples of obesogens include:

1.

Naturally occurring obesogens

  • Fructose

  • Genistein

2.

Xenobiotics

2.1.

Contaminants

  • Pharmaceuticals

    • Diethylstilbesterol

    • Estradiol

    • Rosiglitazone

  • Organic Pollutants (OP’s)

    • Industrial Chemicals

      • Bisphenol A (BPA)

      • Organotins

      • Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA)

      • Phthalates

      • Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs)

      • Polychlorinated Biphenyl Ethers (PCBs)

    • Organophosphate Pesticides

      • Chlorpyrifos

      • Diazinon

    • Organophosphate Pesticides

      • Dichlordifenyltrichloretan (DDT),

      • Dichlordifenyltrichloretan (DDT),

    • Other Environmental Pollutants

      • Benzo[a]pyrene

      • Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5)

      • Triclosan

2.2.

Additives

How obesogens cause obesity

Once inside our fat cells, they chance the property of fat cells: they change fat cell proliferation (increase in number) and apoptosis (cell death). There is more proliferation than apoptosis because obesogens increase stem cell conversion into fat cells. And obesity is the excess accumulation of fat cells.

Obesogens are hard to get rid of. This is because our body is designed to protect us. If fat cells were to release obesogens, they would be released into our bloodstream and the rest of the body, bringing effects to other organs. So, as a protective mechanism, obesogens are stored in fat cells.

And fat cells keep increasing in number…

A study done on the effect of air pollution (an obesogenic factor) on weight gain and waist circumference on middle aged to older 14,000 individuals from 2011 -2015. They found a positive associating between air pollution and weight gain and waist circumference [Published by Science of Total Environment].

What can we do about obesogens?

By now, you know the detrimental effects of obesogens. You have seen examples. But, you may wonder: what should I do about my health.

We did not choose to live in this environment. But we can chose to optimise our detoxification system. We have detox systems in place in our body: liver, bile, lungs, GIT (gastrointestinal tract) and skin. All we have to do is maximise these systems to get rid of these obesogens. The key is that instead of having these obesogens in our fat cells, we take them out using these systems.

Detox systems

Eating fiber prevents the reabsorption of obesogens. Some obesogens are released into the GIT through bile secretion (bile is secreted by the liver do help digest fat). But, they can be reabsorbed through the enterohepatic system (a system which reabsorbs the bile through a vein called the portal vein).

What fiber does is that is forms a gel like layer in the GIT so that less obesogens enter the hepatic portal vein so less are absorbed.

More obesogens are secreted out of the body through faeces.

Fiber is found in fruits and vegetables. It is recommended that you eat 30 vegetables and fruit in a week. To increase fiber intake, you can make smoothies that won’t spike insulin levels; this is done by adding nuts, avocado, spinach etc to your smoothies and not just fruit. Broccoli sprouts are high in fiber; you can add them to salads and smoothies. Cruciferous family is rich in fiber.

Secondly, obesogens can leave through the skin. This is through sweating. Sweating can be increased through sun bathing, exercise or sauna. Sweating is further effective if it is paired with physical activities.

Thirdly, autophagy. Autophagy means self eating. This is a process when your cells eat themselves when they are damaged. The damage includes destroyed organelles such as ribosomes, mitochondria and Golgi. Autophagy is used to generate energy and cellular repair. Autophagy is activated when there is no food being broken down e.g., during intermitting fasting. To activate autophagy, you can fast for 12 hours or more; eat dinner by 8pm and eat breakfast at 8am.

Also, give a gap between meals and reduce snacking. This activates MMC: migrating motor complex. This is activated when you have not eaten for 2 hours. It cleans your GIT from the stomach to the intestines, brushing away dead cells and debris. MMC lasts for 1.5 hours.

And lastly, reduce obesogens in the first place: reduce drinking water through plastic bottles; take care with beauty products; reduce pesticides (a quick cheap way is to soak your fruits and vegetables in baking soda water for 15 mins!)

Key takeaways:

  • Obesogens are stored in fat cells.

  • Obesogens increase obesity by increasing fat cell proliferation.

  • Obesogens can be detoxed through the skin, liver, GIT, lungs etc.

  • You can optimise detoxification through autophagy, MMC, increasing fiber, sweating and reducing obesogen exposure.

Conclusion:

Obesogens are everywhere in our environment. and to reduce them is hard. But with the detox tips, you can make your life better!